Customer Reviews

Beethoven: Symphonies Nos. 5 & 7

5 star:		(130)
4 star:		(17)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Carlos Kleiber has gone on record (sorry about the pun) as intensely disliking recordings, especially loathing the studio recording process, which he thinks, with justification in this poor writer's opinion, distorts and perverts the art of music making. This is the principal reason why the work of this notoriously mercurial and eccentric, but clearly genius-level world-class conductor is so regrettably underdocumented on recorded media, and why most all the recordings that do exist are of his live performances.

Kleiber shares one characteristic with the late Leonard Bersnstein - he makes all music interesting. How many times has the average musician in the Vienna Philharmonic performed these two most popular of Beethoven's symphonies? As a symphonic musician myself, I would venture that most of them have long ago lost count. Each player has performed these symphonies scores, if not hundreds of times in his career - under the batons of conductors ranging from the memorable to the pedestrian to the ...

It is said that this venerable and legendary orchestra is incapable of a poor performance, no matter what overdressed ... may be standing upon the podium, spastically flailing away. But the curse and greatest fear of every seasoned orchestral musician is not that his or her playing skills may fail him. His greatest fear is BOREDOM! How many times can you perform Beethoven's 5th and 7th symphonies until you have nothing left to say? Until there is nothing left to discover? Until you step on your ya-ya and miss a repeat in the third movement because you were thinking about your tanking marriage, your disintegrating old jalopy, your pregnant and ...15-year-old daughter - anything except where you were supposed to be, intensely focused on your music?

The Vienna Philharmonic, from this reviewer's experience, IS incapable of a bad performance. But unfortunately it isn't incapable of a boring one. Except, that is, when Carlos Kleiber is the maestro. There is a discipline and attention to minute detail, and a white-hot intensity to these performances that is extremely rare and extremely precious.

These same performances were also video taped for television presentation. One could see that these musicians were on a mission, delivering their absolute all with such commitment as to belie the fact that these same players could (and under lesser conductors probably have) sleepwalk through these warhorses. The audience, to a person, was absolutely rapt - thoroughly transported to that sublime space that on this earth only the greatest art can accomplish. And on CD, without that added visual input, these qualities still come through - an even rarer thing indeed. This is NOT a recording one puts on in the background while "multi-tasking" one's way through household chores. It deserves, COMMANDS, one's undivided attention.
So PLEASE! Buy this recording, no matter how many other recordings you may already have of these symphonies.

BUT...

Be aware that these recordings were made in the late 1970's, in Vienna's famous Musikvereinsaal. While the live acoustics of this venue are wonderful, it is a difficult hall in which to satisfactorily record. Recordings from there often sound dry and shrill. Deutsche Grammophon "tonmeisters" earned notoriety, especially during this period, for producing glassy, harsh, over-miked, over-mixed horrors. At least this recording is partially redeemed by having been mastered on analog tape. DG's digital efforts have typically been unlistenably awful, which is why to this reviewer, unless the performance is truly remarkable in some way, that bright yellow DG label may as well be a "Bio-Hazard" warning.

On the other hand, other critics have said they like "that" sound. So all I can say is, "De gustibus non est disputandum." - "On matters of taste there is no argument." So, "Caveat emptor!" - "Buyer beware!" But even if, like with Yours Truly, the audio quality causes one's fillings to ache, this recording is a "must have."

The Fifth is almost certainly the best ever recorded. I haven't heard every single recording, of course, but I've heard just about all of the most famous and frequently recommended ones, and this one is head and shoulders above the competition in my opinion. Kleiber is often thought of as a fast conductor, but he doesn't race the finale as many people do - he allows the triumphant theme to shine in all its majesty. The ending of the first movement had an electric effect on me when I first heard it - he takes no ritard whatsoever. I don't know whether the score calls for one, but I don't care - the unrelenting feeling he imparts to the music at that point is indescribably powerful. Be aware, however, that some people find this performance too angry or grim. Kleiber does not always savor the sheer beauty of the music, but if he had done so it might have slackened the spectacular urgency and exccitement of the performance.

In the Seventh, Kleiber is still terrific, but perhaps not so clearly ahead of his competitors. My main quibble is that he has the violins play the last phrase of the second movement pizzicato - and to my ears, the effect is jarring. Walter, Solti, and Muti deliver performances which can compete with Kleiber's here - but this is incontestably a distinguished recording. Having both of these performances on one CD for such a small price makes it a no-brainer. Buy it!

When Carlos Kleiber released his classic Beethoven Fifth in 1975 with the Vienna Phil., it made his reputation overnight, and the recording was greeted as a revelation. At the time I wondered if this was really true, since two older Fifths from the early Sixties, Karajan with the Berlin Phil. and Bernstein with the NY Phil., seemed quite wonderful already. Now I have the latest remastering of each, so I decided to sit down and compare them.

Sonics: The Kleiber recording was never one of DG's best--edgy, a bit thin, lacking in warmth. In its "Originals" reissue things are improved but not drastically so. However, neither Karajan nor Bernstein sounds appreciably better, the main difference being that these conductors asked for heavier weight in the lower part of te orchestra and were given wider stereo by the engineers. There is still some shrillness in the strings at loud volume on all three CDs. I would say that Karajan's latest SACD remastering gives him the edge. The trumpets at the beginning of the finale, for example, sound more exciting and easier on the ear.

Tempos: It's remarkable that all three ocnductors hear the Beethoven Fifth at the same tempo in every movement, within a few seconds of each other. (Karajan times out faster in the finale because he skips the exposition repeat, which Kleiber and Bernstien both take). The main exception is Bernstein's first mvoement, which at 8:30 takes a full minute longer than the other two and sounds stodgy by comparison (heard in isolation it comes off as measured and grand, a traditional approach in this movement, except for the ever-fleet Toscanini).

Interpretation: Here is where Kleiber's reputation stands or falls. I think if I played these three recordings blind, the finales would be identical to any listener. Karajan's first movement is more propulsive than Kleiber's--a surprise since Kleiber was praised for finding new energy in this worn-out music. In the second movement, where Kleiber always seemed light and expressive, the other two are, also. The scherzos are more or less identical. Only Bernstein's measured first movement gives away his performance, yet with careful listening it emerges that Karajan's phrasing is a bit on the stiff side, while Kleiber's orchestra seems a shade more alert and expressive.

In all, these are all performances to live with a long time. To me, it was surprising that Kleiber wasn't as revolutionary as I'd thought three decades ago. If it makes a difference, I once put five versions of the first movement on a CD to see which was preferred by some friends in a blind listening test. The Kleiber easily won, so maybe there is something special here after all. Second place went to Reiner's great recording from the Fifties on RCA.

If someone was a beginning classical music listener and only wanted ONE CD, this is what I would recommend. This recording very aptly demonstrates the power, emotion and passion that is "classical music." I can think of very few other recordings that capture both the technique and the musicality/style of a piece as effectively as this (though there are a few, see Mravinsky's Tchaik 4,5,6 with the Leningrad Phil for example).

As has been uttered scores of times above, this is the ultimate, quintessential, definitive Beethoven 5 and 7. While this may not seem like something new, consider the source: someone who has, in the past, not been a huge Kleiber fan. I own/have heard several other Kleiber recordings including the highly regarded Brahms 4/Vienna SO and have not particularly cared for his musical vision. This, however, is different. This recording absolutely embodies Beethoven's writing, his personality and the intensity with which HE conducted his own music.

This is absolutely, positively a MUST HAVE for your classical collection.

So much has been written about this incredible performance that I don't feel the need to engage in overblown, highbrow, classical snob's rhetoric; it's all been said before. Yes, it's all true, but here's the skinny on this gem: Beethoven's 5th symphony is, quite simply, music from the gut, and Carlos Kleiber makes that clear; if rock music had existed back in Ludwig's day, this is what it would've sounded like! This recording is so exciting that, by the end of the performance, you'll be like Keanu Reeves after a huge wave; swept away and shaking your head, "Whoah!" The sound quality is outstanding for it's time; so many great, older recordings gather dust on the shelf due to their poor sonics. Now, this is the real kicker, not only is this performance worthy of a full price tag on it's own, but it's coupled with a, nearly as great, rendition of Beethoven's 7th symphony at mid-price! This is, without a doubt, one of the best classical music values on the market. It's not often in life that you can get the "best for less;" this is one of those rare occasions where you can. Enjoy!

Previous reviewers have extolled the virtues of these two now-legendary recordings. I would comment on one feature that previous reviewers have missed: Kleiber follows classical practice and divides the violins left and right, which reaps huge dividends in the Seventh Symphony. Listen to the coda, in which you can hear the dialogue between firsts and seconds literally leaping back and forth across the speakers. This is an astonishing effect and is aptly highlighted by Kleiber -- one of the many features that makes these performances indispensable.

The enigmatic Carlos Kleiber, while producing only a handful of recordings has given us some classic interpretations. This recording of Beethoven's 5th and 7th Symphonies is among these. In fact, they may be compared to Szell's last recording of the complete Beethoven Symphonies with the Cleveland Orchestra. Both have a palpable intensity of expression and were recorded a mere 5 years apart. While Szell achieves this intensity largely through precise rhythmic drive, Kleiber achieves it through exquisite planning of melodic phrase. One clearly hears phrase leading to period, leading to section, leading to overall form. While the Cleveland Orchestra of 1970 was known for its expanse of dynamic expression, the Vienna Philharmonic was, and continues to be known for its complexity of timbre. Kleiber does allow the strings to fall into a "duple" feel in the development of the 1st movement of the 7th. This is a common malady even among the greats. In spite of this really minor flaw, this is one of the truly great recordings. One hears a unified whole from beginning to end of each of these symphonies. I highly recommend it!

This CD, which is part of the Deutsche Grammophon "Originals" series, is a digital re-mastering of performances of Beethoven's 5th and 7th symphonies, originally recorded in 1975 and 1976. I share with other reviewers the opinion that these performances are in a class by themselves. For sheer passion, poetic expression, precision and lyricism, they have no peer. From opening to closing measure of the 5th symphony, Carlos Kleiber and the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra play with an intensity that is almost palpable, an intensity which gives way to exquisite lyric beauty in the slow movement. The 7th symphony, which has been described as the "apotheosis of the dance," is no less brilliant. These are the definitive performances of Beethoven's 5th and 7th symphonies; this CD should be on the shelf of every serious collector of Beethoven's music.

Amazon.com couldn't have picked a better work to highlight than Beethoven's Seventh symphony. Listening to the Seventh was what sparked my interest in classical music. They also couldn't have picked a better CD to start with than this. Of the many versions of this symphony that I have listened to, only Karajan's early 60's recording compares to Kleiber and the Vienna Philharmonic's recording of the Seventh. As a bonus no recording I have ever heard matches this performance of the Fifth.

A true test for any performance of the Seventh is the second movement, an allegretto. Kleiber's moves it along at the tempo that Beethoven intended; rather than slowing it down, as many conductors do. The result is outstanding. The other movements are, appropriately, thrilling listening.

The famous Fifth is incomparable here. Crisp and exciting throughout.

I know when I hear something truly outstanding. Months and months ago I was severely puzzled by all these reviews here; the one said it was stupendous, but others thought it lacked this or that.

Now that was all very difficult for a, more or less, beginner. Reference works named it a classic, all right, so ... the price was excellent, too ... I bought it. You'd be amazed how awful all those 5ths sound on television and commercials and at other places. This is nothing of the sort, of course. Kleiber (who did not churn out recording after recording like, say, Karajan) hit the gold here.

This CD towers above most other competitors in the field, and later, when you have listened to it many many times, you begin accumulating those other 5ths. To tell the truth, you might search a while before you find something you also cherish. To all people relatively new to classical music, buy this one. Indeed, later you will be tempted to search for others, as I said before. In Classical Music few recordings of a particular work are definitive or possess all the qualities you demand to hear all at once.

You won't go wrong here. Besides the famous 5th you get the 7th, equally fine (second movement is a jewel).